SCI Awards Colorado State Senator Perry Will the 2023 SCI State Legislator of the Year Award.

Safari Club International (SCI) is pleased to announce Colorado State Senator Perry Will (R-CO-05) as the recipient of the 2023 SCI State Legislator of the Year Award.

With this award, the sportsmen’s community recognizes Senator Will as a tireless advocate for scientific wildlife management and on Second Amendment issues affecting hunters. 

For example, Senator Will played an instrumental role in helping defeat Senate Bill 31 in 2022—the proposed hunting and trapping ban on bobcats and mountain lions which SCI vehemently opposed.  And in 2023, he co-sponsored a bipartisan bill that would prevented the introduction of wolves as an endangered species without a Section 10(j) permit issued by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS).  That bill was considered critical as it would have allowed for more flexibility in managing wolves and authorized the take and harvest of wolves causing harm across ecosystems.  Ultimately however, Governor Polis vetoed the bill.

“Senator Perry Will is a distinguished leader in defending hunting freedoms and a tireless supporter of wildlife conservation in Colorado and nationwide,” said Ben Cassidy, SCI Executive Vice President of International Government and Public Affairs. “We are grateful for his unwavering commitment to upholding SCI’s mission and are proud to recognize him as this year’s 2023 SCI State Legislator of the Year.”

In addition to serving Colorado in the State Senate, Senator Will is currently the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation (CSF) Colorado Caucus Co-Chair. Senator Will previously represented District 57 in the Colorado House of Representatives and retired from the Colorado Parks and Wildlife Department after 43 years of service. Senator Will also actively participates in a wildlife legislative and regulatory coalition of which SCI is a member.